Dutch heavy construction manufacturer Huisman will deliver its first monopile gripper to Japan, also the first of its kind to be used in Japan.
The gripper can handle monopiles of up to 8m in diameter,Huisman says.
Construction firms TOA Corporation and Obayashi have placed the order, which comes a couple of years after Huisman delivered a 1,250t pedestal mounted crane for the firms, mounted on a self-elevating platform. The crane and the gripper communicate through software controls.
Japan is speeding up its offshore wind installations with 148 projects on the way, according to intelligence firm 4COffshore.
Of these, however, only 10 are operating and construction of just two ’has progressed enough to connect the turbines and generate electricity’.
”This order is the result of our partnership with TOA Corporation and Obayashi, which we have developed over multiple years,” said Timon Ligterink, commercial director Asia-Pacific at Huisman. ”Together with the Huisman-built crane, the gripper will allow safe upending and installation of monopiles in Japanese waters, accelerating the energy transition in the country.”
